Steam-engine.



E. lVlcFEE.

STEAM ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 10. 1915.

Patented Oct. 5, 1915.

, ammo: EDISON M FEE srnrns rare;

EDISON MGFEE, OF HAMI LTON, MISSOURI.

STEAM-ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 10, 1915. Serial No. 27,162.

To all whom it may concern: I Be it known that I, EDISON MoFnn, acitizen of the United States, residing at Hamilton, in thecounty ofCaldwell and State of -Missouri, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements 1Il Steam Engines, of

tively simple in construction and may, therefore, be cheaplymanufactured and one ml which the rotor is so designed that a maxi- Ymum utilization of the expansive and impinging forces of the steam willbe obtained during the use of the engine.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel form of rotorand piston ring, the piston ring being designed to allow for andcompensate for expansion in the rotor.

The above, and other incidental objects of a similar nature, which willbe hereinafter more specifically treated are accomplished by such means.as are illustrated inthe acc'ompanying drawings, described in thefollowing specification, and then more particularly pointed out in theclaims which are appended hereto and form part of this application. g

With reference to the drawings, wherein there has been illustrated thepreferred embodiment of this invention, as it is reduced topractice,-and throughout the several views of which similar referencenumerals desig-v nate corresponding parts, Figure '1 is an end view ofthe engine, disclosing the parts thereof in operative, assembledrelation; Fig. 2 is a detail section taken transversely through thesteam engine; Fig. 3 is a detail enlarged section showing the pistonring applied to the piston or rotor vane; Fig. 4 is a face view of thepiston ring.

As embodied in the accompanyingdraw- .ings and as best disclosed as anoperative entirety in Fig. 2 thereof, my engine includes a steam pipe 10which leads from a boiler or other suitable steam source, a ro-, torcylinder 11, a rotor 12which is journaled' therein, a throttle valve 14which controls the amount of steam admitted to the rotor, and

Patented one. s, 3915.

the rotor shaft 15 from which the power is taken from the engine. 1

The boiler to which the pipe 10 is con nected maybe of-any conventionaltype and need notbe here further described, since it constitutes noportion of the invention. The engine bed, indicated at 16, and the rotoror driven shaft bearings 17 are formed as an integral casting with asaddle 18 which is mounted upon a suitable support indicated rte rotorcylinder is provided at one end with an integral bearing 20, in whichthe driven shaft is journaled and through which it projects, and isprovided at its other end with a removable-head plate 21 which issocured by bolts or equivalent fastening devices. The main shaftbearings are provided with cap plates 23 and oil cups indicated at 24 sothat efiicient lubrication of the main shaft will be obtained at alltimes.

Mounted within the cylinder is a concencylindrical form and is providedat its upper portions with a longitudinally extending slot or opening26, through which the steam ex cylinder. The steam escaping into thisspace trically disposed rotor casing 25 which is of I 27 is exhaustedthrough the pipe 28, which leads into the cylinderat the lower sidethereof, as best disclosed in Fig. 2. Uponthe upper side of the cylinderis mounted the steam'thro'ttle casing 29, the bottom wall of which isprovided with two openings 30 and 31 through which the steam may pass,into the pipes 32 and 33. The terminals of these pipes are passedintothe cylinder and across the space 27 and lead through the rotor casingat two points thereof, as-shown in Fig.

" 2. The valve body of the throttle, indicated 7 at 34, is slidablymounted and is provided with a valve stem 37 which is projected throughthe end wall of the throttle, casing for pivotal connection with a linkv38, the upper end of which is pivoted on a bracket arm 39, and, thelower end of which is freely connected by a rod 40 to a throttle lever41.

This lever 41 is pivoted upon a sector frame 42 and is provided with apawl 43, by means of which the lever may be held in adjusted position.It will be seen, particularly upon reference to Fig. 2, that thethrottle levera the casing 29.

Figs. 3 and 4.

The rotor consists essentially in a plurality of radially extending,circumferen-. tiallyspaced vanes or wings 44, which extendlongitudinally on the rotor shaft and are of uniform width and length.The outer end faces of the rotor vanes are provided with longitudinallyextending, substantially V-shaped grooves 45, wherein are seated thetransversely extending ribs 46 formed on the inner face of thecylindrical piston ring 47. The piston ring 47 is formed in the natureof a sheet metal shell of cylindrical form, the meeting edges of whichare scalloped and overlapped,. as shown in detail in The two elements ofthe scarf joint are adapted to slide one over the other to allowfor-expansion and contraction of the piston ring and, for this reason,the grooves 45 are made greater depth and of a greater angle than theribs 46, so that the ribs may move within the grooves when the piston orrotary ring is expanding or contracting.

Extending through the piston ring, are, a plurality of circumfenentiallyspaced slots or'openings arranged to: radially aline with the segmentalchambers between the rotor vanes so that steam may enter these chainbersor exhaust therefrom through the open ing of the rotor casihg.

From the foregoing description, the manner in which the engine isadapted. to oper ate will now be apparent. It will be seen that thethrottle may be initially adjusted to admit steam through the pipe Thesteam passing tl'II'OIlQlI tlIG pipe 32wi'll pass into one of thespacesbetween the vanes of the rotor and will expand, causing the rotation ofthe rotor. Asaeach expansion chamber between the vanes of the rotorcomes into alinement with'the opening 26 of the rotor casing, the steamwill exhaust into the an nular chamber 21 between the rotor casing andcylinder and "then escape from this chamber into the exhaust pipe 28,,

It will be readily observed that if it is desired to reverse thedirection of rotation of the rotor, this may l)Ch()C()1H.})llSrrGdby'adj'usting the throttle deveigtaallow the steam to enter the rotorcasing through the pip 83, instead of through the pipe u I now fdesireto direct partrc rlar attention to the constructionof the piston ringand holding.v ribs, thereof; 'As was previously menace explained, theholding ribs are seated grooves which are of such cross-sectional area,as to permit the ribs to move trans versely with respect to the base thny making it possible for the piston ring to expand or contract inaccordance with changes in tenriperature in the cylinder. The scarfjoint at the ad oining edges of the piston ring is, of course, anessential complement of the ribs and grooves, since, were it not forthis scarf joint, it would be impossible for the piston ring to contractor expand in the eificient manner desired.

in reduction to practice, it has been found that the form of thisinvention iilustrated in the drawings and referred to in the abovedescription as the preferred embodiment is the most efficient andpractical; yet, realizing that the conditions concurrent with theadoption of this device will necessarily vary, I

including a plurality of radially extending vanes, and a piston ringincasing the rotor vanes, said rlng being provided with a plurahty ofopenings, there being one opening .connnunicating with each of thesegmental chambers defined between the vanes, a steam supply pipeleading through the cylinder across said annular chamber and into theretor casing, and a throttle valve for controlling the admission ofsteam into the rotor casing.

2. A. rotary steam engine inciuding a cylinder, a rotor casing, a rotorjcurnaled in the casing, said rotor including a plurality ofspaced,'radially extending vanes provided in their outer ends withlongitudinally extending, substantially V-shaped grooves,

and a piston ring incasing the vanes, said piston ring being providedwith a scarf joint, whereby the ring may expand. or con tract inaccordance with variations, in temperature Within the rotor casing, anda plurality of circumferentially spaced, substair tially V-shaped ribsextending transversely across the inner face of the piston rinq', said iribs being adapted t o seat in the greet the vanes and being'movab etherein low for expansion or coutreimn of the.

:ton i'ing.

3. A, rotary steam engine including a .nderfd rot 0r casing, and (a rowjournaied in the casing, said rotor including a plurality of rotorvanes, provided in their outer ends with longitudinally extendinggrooves, and .a piston ring intzusing the vanes, said ring beingexpansible and having a plurality of circumferentially spaced,transverselyextending ribs on its inner faces, said 'ribs being adaptedto seat in the grooves of the vanes and being movable therein, to allowring.

for expansion or contraction of the piston 13 In testimony whereof Ihereunto affix my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

Witnesses:

D. 0. Low, C. E. LIVICK.

EDISON MOFEE.

